"I am but a simple purveyor of words. A story teller one might say. For the right number of coins, I shall create you a world of your very own, where you will be hailed as its hero, its ruler….its god. Cross me, however, and you shall be cast down as its villain, the lowest of creatures. Your final fate will be most befitting…and unfortunate." - Michael L. Turner

Wednesday, December 18, 2013

Before I
start, I'd like to thank Michael for inviting me here to his blog. I am
relaunching my Artesans of Albia fantasy series now that the first trilogy is
complete (yes, first - there are two more trilogies to come!) and I hope you
will take advantage of the special offer prices that are available from 12 - 19
December, while this blog tour lasts. Links below! And don't forget the
Giveaway - you could win all 3 of my books, both signed print copies and
e-books, plus all the books in the BookBlast!

Where I Find Inspiration.

People are
always asking where I find the inspiration for writing fantasy novels. I have
mentioned many times in other blog posts how the initial idea for the series
came about (if you don't know, it was from watching a kids' 1970s TV program
called 'Tarot - Ace of Wands), so I'm
not going to ressurrect that theme here. I always find it fascinating to read where other
writers get their ideas, so here are a few of mine.

I own two
rescue dogs, Milly and Milo. They are technically Lurchers. Milly, we believe,
is Whippet/Border Collie cross (you can't see the Collie, it's in her brain -
she looks like a golden Whippet) and we believe Milo to be a Short-Haired
Saluki (according to a retired dog show judge who lives in our village). What
has this to do with inspiration for writing, I hear you ask? Well, I find
walking a great way to clear the mind, and when my mind is clear, all sorts of
weird things pop into it. When I began writing my Artesans series, many of the
ideas for the plot came to me while out walking in the woods. I found this
extremely frustrating at first, until I learned to carry a notepad and pencil!

We live in
the North Hampshire countryside in southern UK. It is mainly farmland, with a
few copses and small woods. There is plently of wildlife - pheasants and other
game birds (put there for the farmers to shoot, poor little things), badgers,
rabbits, deer, and foxes. In the winter, if we get snow, I love tracking these
animals by their footprints. If you look with an artist's eye, you can see
patterns and even messages written across the white pages that the snow creates
out of the fields. How could you not be inspired by such sights? Sometimes I
wish I were a poet - our landscape would have me writing endlessly.

My Artesans
of Albia fantasy series has songs associated with it. There is a song for each
of the books currently published, and I'm now working on the music for Book 4,
which will be published in Spring 2014. Because the "magic" system in
Artesans is nature-based (my Artesans channel the elements through their own
souls and life forces), I found plenty of inspiration for these songs by
walking around our local lanes, woods, and fields. Natural music is all around
us, you simply need receptive eyes and hears to be aware of it. We are also on
the top of a hill, and Nature's elements often make themselves felt - even when
you wish they wouldn't!

Farmers
are, by necessity, practical people, and I think it would be quite reasonable
to view farmyards as generally lacking in inspiration for writers of fantasy.
Yet round here, you'd be wrong. I remember the day I went for one of my normal
walks, one that took me past the grain store sheds, the tractor with its
covering of mud, and the long-forgotten, rusty farm implements. Not the kind of
place you'd expect to be suddenly confronted by a stone circle. Yet that's exactly
what happened. There, next to the track leading down to the sheds, stood a
stone circle that definitely hadn't been there the week before.

And it was
beautiful. Some of the stones were upright, some flat on the ground. Some had
holes bored through them, some not. They were different kinds of stone too, and
different colors. It was a wonderful experience, walking around the corner and
seeing this ethereal sight. I remember being captivated by it, and wondering
what had made the farmer do it? The stones werelarge - they would not have been cheap to buy! There is no quarry
nearby, so they had to be transported. I guess the farm tractors would have
been used to 'plant' them, but I'm sure they cost our farmer a portion of his
profits. And he's added to them lately as well - the circle still grows!

So as you
can see, I find our beautiful local landscape a brimming rescource of ideas and
images when I need inspiration.

Artesans of
Albia series synopsis.

On a foolhardy foray into a foreign realm,
Taran Elijah is attacked by a terrible weapon known as the Staff. Killing its
wielder, he escapes into Albia, inadvertantly carrying the Staff.

Concerned by the
vicious raids that follow Taran's actions, Major Sullyan of the High King's
forces crosses into Andaryon to seek diplomatic resolution to the crisis. She
is captured and tortured by Lord Rykan, aspirant to the Andaryon throne.

Slowly dying, Sullyan
escapes his clutches. She offers her skills to the Hierarch in defense of his
throne, finally confronting Rykan on the field of battle.

Her handsome Captain
and lover, Robin Tamsen, embarks on a desperate quest to recover the Staff. But
Rykan's greedy General, Sonten, is two steps ahead of him. If Robin cannot lay
hold of the weapon before Sonten does, Sullyan's life and the lives of all
Artesans are forfeit.

“One of the best
fantasy books I’ve ever read. The balance between background story and action
is just perfect. I’m very glad I found this author. You won’t want to miss this
series!” ~Denyse Cohen, author of Witch’s Soulmate, Book 1 of the
Living Energy Trilogy

“Splendidly written in
a wonderful voice, drew me in immediately. Ms. Peace’s imagination alone gets 5
stars. Spectacular worlds and enchanting scenes. Anyone who enjoys losing
themselves in a world of a charming fantasy with plenty of layers and a host of
intriguing characters won’t be disappointed!” ~Rosary McQuestion, author
of Once Upon Another Time

“As soon as I finished
this book I was eager to start the next. I highly recommend this book. Great
Job!!” ~Janus Gangi, author of Elizabeth Rose and That
Morning After

ABOUT THE AUTHOR:

Cas Peace was born in Hampshire UK, in 1957, and has lived
there most of her life. Her first career was as a horse-riding instructor, and
horses remain very close to her heart. She then spent 13 years working for the
British Civil Service before leaving the UK to live in Italy for three years,
1991-1994. She speaks passable but by no means perfect Italian, and loves to
return to Italy whenever she can.

Cas's other great loves are anything to do with
animals, especially dogs and horses, (she supports many animal charities) and
also singing. Cas loves folk songs and along with her husband, who plays
guitar, has performed in many a Southern England folk club. Sometimes they even
asked her back! She writes folk songs to accompany her fantasy novels, and
offers them as free downloads from her website.